Posts tagged custom ROMs

We're fans of the LG Optimus G, although the custom ROM lovers among us might want to tamp down their expectations after this. We've confirmed comments to Android Central that the late 2012 flagship has a locked bootloader much like the Optimus 4X HD and Optimus Vu that went before it -- any serio...

HTC wasn't too popular when they denied Desire HD owners a hearty mouthful of Ice Cream Sandwich, but as usual, the community over at XDA Developers has stepped up to make it happen. Despite HTC claiming various technical issues as barriers for the upgrade, Team Blackout's Android 4.0.4 build (aka...

We saw CyanogenMod 9 reach the perfect poise of a stable release on the Galaxy Nexus just this past Thursday. It's now time for everyone else to join the club: all devices that can run CM9 now get the firmware in the same polished state, giving more conservative fans a path to CyanogenMod's custom...

Over-the-air firmware updates are mainstays for most smartphone platforms, but custom ROM builders have rarely had such a luxury, even with Android. The OTA Update Center wants to shoulder that noble burden. Along with simply hosting the updates to prevent outrageous bandwidth bills, the Center en...

It feels like just yesterday that we were getting acquainted with the back-to-basics ways of HTC's Sense 4.0. Well-known HTC phone modder Football doesn't want us to get comfy: he claims to have both obtained a leaked version of Sense 4.1's ROM Upgrade Utility (RUU) and folded it into the 2.2 upda...

If you're the sort to get a little too adventurous with CyanogenMod 10 or other custom ROMs, Google just gave you a crutch. Android 4.1.1 factory images are now available for every Nexus device that can currently get a taste of Jelly Bean: the HSPA+ Galaxy Nexus, Nexus S and the expected Nexus 7. ...

Motorola's initial promise to allow unlocked bootloaders came across to many enthusiasts as somewhat hollow: as long as there was an escape clause, carriers like AT&T and Verizon could clamp down and maintain the tough-to-modify status quo. RAZR-philes will be happy to know that there's a plan...

Developers, start your engines. T-Mobile's version of the Samsung Galaxy S II was the slowest in the family to get the official kernel source. It's here now, though, arriving on Sammy's site a whole four days after the phone's release; this isn't an eternity by any means, but its counterparts had...

Turns out, Sony Ericsson is really coming around to the understanding that Android phones are not a one-size-fits-all proposition. After taking notice of the FreeXperia team's tireless efforts to bring CyanogenMod 7.1 to certain SE devices, the company is now "pulling a Samsung" by lending its su...

Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To mak...

The Thunderbolt, you might have noticed, marked an unpleasant change for HTC by making it a tiny bit difficult to replace the company's own Android software with your favored community-sourced alternative. Well, turns out it's not alone and could in fact be just be the tip of an unhappy iceberg hea...